My copy just arrived. I chose the hardcover edition (and I think that is the perfect choice – the book is too big to be conveniently handled as a paperback; and leather just is not a good match for a book like this. (The binding in my copy appeared to be stitched.) If you need a leather copy, it may make sense to have the hard-cover copy rebound rather than buying the Ignatius leather copy. But since this book is a bit on the large side (and thus you won’t be carrying it around daily) and since you may wish to replace it in 5-15 years with a *complete *Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, a leather binding seems like overkill.
Spot checks show that the single volume seems to most of what was in the individual booklets, usually laid out the same, with some significant exceptions:
- No study questions (sorry – they are completely gone)
- Only one introduction to the Study Bible.
Added are the following:
- Introduction to the 1966 (RSV-CE) Edition (2 pages)
- Introduction to the Gospels by Curtis Mitchell (9 pages)
- Concise Concordance (168 pages)
- Indices (Parables & Metaphors of Jesus, Miracles of Jesus, Doctrines, Charts, Maps, Topical Essays, Word Studies, and Abbrevations for Books of the Bible (21 pages)
- Color Maps (8 pages)
I was underwhelmed by the color maps, which are inferior to almost any Bible Atlas and to the standard “Oxford Bible Maps” in their Study Bibles.
The Concordance was nice, I suppose, but I would have rather had the study questions.
The Doctrine Index was especially useful, and helps to make this an “apologetics” Bible.
Spot checks showed almost every page was identical (even in formatting) to the booklets, but I read that some some revisions have been made. I would not call it “wide margin” but the side margins are 5/8" and the top/bottom margins (not including page number and book name/chapter number) are 1/2", and the layout has plenty of space for notes.
Like the original booklets, the page contains the RSV-2CE text, followed by a short table of cross references, followed by annotations (usually filling 1/2-1/3 of the page), followed by (super-tiny) RSV textual notes. I did not see the standard RSV “explanatory notes” but I gather that their content is incorporated into the more detailed annotations. There is also no table of differences between the RSV-CE and the RSV (as I have seen in other RSV-2CE books).
Most of the notes are aimed at what I would call “2nd time readings of the Bible.” It is a bit too detailed for a first reading of the Bible, but won’t satisfy those looking for in-depth analysis (those sort of readers will probably want to refer to individual commentary volumes anyway.)
The biblical text is set off by pericope headers. There appear to be 8 charts, 20 grey-scale maps, 23 topical studies, and 62 word studies. I might have slightly miscounted, but that is not far off.
I am guessing here, but it seems the Biblical text is 11 point (quite generous, in fact), the cross-references are and annotations are around 8-9 points, and the textual footnotes are 6-7 points. Different fonts are used, so it is not easy to mistake text for other elements.
The pages do not bleed through, and it is easy read most parts of the Bible. The only exceptions are the tiny textual notes and the introductory essays and topical notes, which are formatted as a single long line.
This volume is perhaps a bit too big to carry around from place to place – it is possible, but hardly convenient. My hardcover was 7.25" x 10.25" The paper is nice – not glossy, not Bible paper, but I think it will tan with age (it doesn’t seem to be acid-free).
For $21 for the hardcover and $15 for paperback (on Amazon), it seems to be a
bargain. As long as you understand its limitations, I would generally recommend buying this copy. For me, it won’t replace my existing study Bibles or even become my main study Bible, but is a nice resource. Since it has many OT references, you’ll want to use this Bible with a full Bible.
with this study bible and look forward to using it a lot in my Bible Study class and for devotional reading.